"PV industry growth has followed a significant, often dramatic, upward trajectory. But unfortunately, revenues have followed an unprofitable path," says Paula Mints, founder, and chief market research analyst at SPV Market Research.

According to research by SPV, the top PV manufacturers have been losing considerable amounts of money: "The manufacturers [in the table below] shipped 58% of total shipments in 2012. Revenues for the manufacturers [in this table] were 65% of total revenues in 2012. But at the same time, the manufacturers [in this table] lost a combined US$2.1-billion last year".

Mints believes that a pricing recovery may not come quickly: "Currently the average price for PV modules is <US$0.70/Wp, with inventory trending significantly lower. High levels of inventory will keep prices down in 2013. The good news is that deployment of technology will continue at high levels. The bad news is that manufacturer failures will continue. Once the consolidation in the industry is complete, PV module prices will increase".

2012 Top Ten Manufacturers (reproduced with the permission of SPV Market Research)

2012

2012 MWp

Revenues in Millions ($)

Net losses in millions ($)

Yingli

2297.1

1,828.5

-491.9

First Solar

1875.4

3,368.5

-96.3

JA Solar

1680.0

1,071.6

-150

Trina Solar

1590.0

1,296.7

-266.6

Canadian Solar

1543.0

1,294.0

-195.3

Suntech

1500.0

1,065.0

-351.3

Motech

1274.0

523.0

-170.7

Gintech

1059.0

470.4

-28.3

Sharp Solar

932.0

2,282.9

-230.1

NeoSolar

910.0

413.0

-141.1

Total Above

14660.5

7,262.0

NA

Other

10812.5

7262.0

NA

Total Industry

25473.0

20,875.6

NA

NB: Paula Mints will be writing about the current predicament in the PV industry in the latest issue of Renewable Energy Focus magazine. The article will contain charts looking at PV Industry growth (2002-2013 estimate) and Regional PV Shipments and Average Selling Prices (2002-2012)For a free signup click here.

Members' Login

Our website uses cookies. Cookies enable us to provide the best experience possible and help us understand how customers
use our website.Our site won't work without them. By continuing to use our website you accept our use of cookies.
Find out more about cookies×